Flow valve



Feb. 9, 1954 J. H. HOWARD ET AL 2,668,553

FLOW VALVE Filed Sept. 20, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet l y INVENTORS 55 5 JAMEnHHowARD ATTORN Ehi.

Feb. 9, 1954 J. H. HOWARD ET Al.

FLOW VALVE 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 20. 1948 l ,s ma. l

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INVENTORS JAMES. H.HowARn i ATTQRNEYS.

Feb. 9, 1954 J. H,v HOWARD ET AL 2,668,553

FLOW VALVE Filed Sept. 20, 1948 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 1 1AHM y l '44 W ,7

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J' 3 H HovJfITOR" mga FAUL F? MILLS. /'/./0 pwmm g f' mdllu 'ATTQRN Ys Feb 9, 1954 J. H. HOWARD ET Al. 2,668,553

FLOW VALVE Filed Sept. 20, 1948 4 S eats-Sheet 4 -llll X\| l Z ZZ w z8 N L z5 Fig. /4 Fig/3 il l N y NM Fi F lg /2 g /5 INVENTORl JAMEaMHowARD By PAuL RJMLLS n ATTO RN E XS.

Patented Feb. 9, 1,954

James lHoward and, Paul R. Mills, Houston,

Tex., assignorsy to Camco, Incorporated,Hons.`

ton, Tex.. incorporation of, Texas, n Application September 20, 1948,-SerialNo; 50,0389;

5. Claims.. 1

The invention relates to; improvements.- n gas lift Valves and. the Dwing-of wellsbytheapplication of fluid under pressure.

Examples of gas lift: Valves-0f the type to Vwhich the present invention relates; are disclosedin` Patent No. 2,339,487 issuedvJanuarylS, 1944 to. William R. King; and in theco-pendingapplications of` Carlisle and Mills-,Se ria1 No. v658,092 iiled March 29, 1946, issued June 12, 1951as Patent No. 2,556,867 and Serial No, 6 20,690 filed October 6, 1945, issued March 22A 1949, as Patent No. 2,465,060; Thesevalvesembody a pressure loaded bellows type of valve, wherein the bellows thereof is subject to damagel by high luidvpressure in the Well at the time of installation, and prior to the time when the valves are. in the operating stage.

With the foregoingin mind, itV is, one ofthe objects of. the present invention to provide an improved gas lift valveof the.. character referred to wherein the bellows is protected against damage by high well, uidl pressures in excess of normal operating pressures.

Another object is the provisionof an improved liftl ofv the character referred to which has advantages over those proposed;- heretofore in the way of lexibilityfin applicationeflciency, ease of adjustment and opera-tion satisfactorily over a wide range of conditions.

Other objects and advantages will hereinafter appear, it being understood` that Well .fluids can be either gas, oil, water, mud; olf-Combinations thereof.

For the purpose .or illustra-tins: the invention. several embodiments thereof" are. shown-inthe drawingsv wherein Y Fig. 1 is ar sideA` elevationof thetubing having applied thereto oneof the flow-valves of thepresent invention with the tubinginsideawellcasing; i Fig.v 2 is a longitudinalY sectional View .0f the ilow valve in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged; fragmentary. Sectional view illustrative o f the loperating:action'of the floW valve in/B'igs. 1 andfZ J" Fig. 4V is a section taken` on theline 4--4 in Fig. 3;

Figs. 5 and 8. are detail, fragmentary; sectional Views;

Figs. 6, 7, 7A, 9, 13 andl4; arefragmentary, sectional views.r showing modifications;-

Fig; 10 is an vrelevational View,l vpartlyin section, showing a novel Way of applying one of the flow valves to the side of the-tubing;

Fig. 11 is a Viewl similar-.to Fig. 1 showingthe manner of; use of the two typesfoiA nowl valves known in the art;

Fig. 12 is a view similarto Fig;-a 2;,y showing a modification and Fis- .115. afiosmontarr not; rottlrinesection of a test tting for the now valves.

In; Fis. l thewelloasing :I Q-is positioncdfinsthe Well and forms a reservoir II when the c asingfis olosed in;therusilalIriaimer at thezsurfaoe. A-fiow valve l2,whic h` operates byfgasnressure. in casing; I0.. is attached by vclamp lossen: and-amuse loto the string of pipe or flow tubingf- L6 which isl-ttilizedI for removing thegoilg, .-jAs-Shownmore clearly in Fig.,2 theow valyeyIZ-made up offtheffsecr tionsv I1, I8, and I9, screwed; togetherto forma Container, An bellows 2liv is: iieol; at.; its upper end. to section. Ig'I. T o the lower endgof: the bellowsis xed; a cap r2l having af, stemAZZVLthSflatten being provided with the,4 enlarged portion.- .23;. The valvesection I8.; is providedatstherlower: end thereof,` with an annular. roove; Zito receive. an 0-ring24 which. whonensasedfby thefenlarged portion 23. seals ofi thel bellowstohamherf'ffrom tige relatively high gas. pressure. in valve. section I Screwed to the stem 2:2.l iszamemberfahavingits lower end formed to provideavalvei., Threaded` on member 2 5 is anut 251;'tofholdgin;compressiona spring 28. Initially the bellows is charged ,with gas at a predetermined.'pressuregforwhich purpose a suitable.valveY 29 'is nroyided... The-plug 3.0 and an associated. gasket;l insurev against: leakage of the gas, from the bellows Inletopenings 31 provide that the pressure inuvalvesection. I9 is equal to the gas liftl pressure inoasingJIl, at the flow; valveunit I 2'. This same zpressure -exists in valve section I8 whenv valve 26'isclosed, as shown infliig. 2. This isbecauseat such. time the enlarged portion 23 `is below ring/24",l and its diam.-Y eter is less than the inside. diameter of' the lower` end of valve section -I 8.

The adjustment of nutl 21T; and the gasspressurefin bellows 2l?L are such that-A the combined effect of this pressureI and the spring 28 holds Valve 26, closed only upto aA` certainpoint. -In other words, `when the=gas lift pressure acting on bellows Ztlb to urge valve- 26- upward and o its seat exceeds a predetermined maximum, this valve opens andtheiloellowscontracts;l Such-upward opening mov'evnfien-t-oi*valve-26l is limited by engagement of the upperend of member 25 with the lower en-dof valvesect-ion fIB, as shownin Fig. 3. -AnV important aspectofthe invention resides in the fact thatinthisjposition ofthe parts, the enlarged portion, 23 isV engagement with ring 24 to seal o i the valve sectionl Strom. higher well pressure.V VThecharge.*thatnis normallyin the bellows may approXimateAOO to 500.pounds per square inch.. Thusitisseen thatahydrostatic pressure in-the well of; about,5,000 to, 6.0.00 pounds might, causeV damage,y to the vbellows` if permittedto leak, into the, space .abovethe seal. This high tloilolrostatie. ,pressuref can bei encoun! tered inv wells,10,000 or more-feetmeep. `at..tl1,e, time when the valves are installed and priorto times when the pressure in the tubing is greater than in the casing and valve 26 is open. This back ow is very undesirable in well operation.V

The check valve unit 32 has a threaded lower end 33 which screws into the fitting I5. The ball end valve 34 opens downwardly when the pressure above the valve is greater than that below the valve and stays open by' gravity until closed by back ow velocity pressure. A ring or disk 35 of suitable flexible material such as Hycar is used to provide a positive seal in addition to the metal-to-metal contact of valve 34 on its seat. Y

There are usually several of the flow valves I2 in a tubing string, any one of which is set to open at a higher gas lift pressure than the flow valve directly below it.

As shown in Fig. 5 the edges 361 of the bellows discs may be rolled over at 36' to lock them mechanically together prior to the soldering operation. As another expedient, the bellows 20 may be provided with an outside coating 31 of plastic or synthetic rubber as shown in Fig. 8. Such a coating seals up any microscopic pore leaks which would affect the operation of the flow valve. This type of bellows has particular use in cases where instead of having a definite air-pressure charge in the bellows a vacuum is used, or the bellows sealed with atmospheric pressure. Use of a vacuum is possible since there is also a spring adjustment, as shown in Fig. 2. It is, of course, seen that if desired a plastic coating can be applied to the inside of the bellows.

In the modication shownl in Figs. 6 and 'I the stem 22 is provided with a fluid passage 38 to conduct the fluid-past the O-ring 24 when valve 26 is closed. Also, a relief check valve 39 may be employed. This valve would serve the purpose of bleeding oil any trapped iluid which might leak past the 0-ring 24' into valve section I3, and otherwise cause a liquid-lock which would prevent, or at least hamper, the normal functioning of bellows 20. Tests and field experience has proven that valves using a bellows seal such as shown in the King Patent No. 2,339,487 can become iluid locked open and be made inoperative. The relief valve 39 will relieve the pressure of this trapped` fluid to permit proper operation of the valve.

In the modification shown in Fig. 7A the effective cross-section area A of stem 22 and ring 24 is equal to the effective cross-section area A of the bellows 20. Thus, normally no pressure acts directly on the bellows but since the area thereof and that of stem 22 are equal the fluid pressure acts on the stembelow the ring 24' to compress the bellows so that the same valve operation is obtained without fluid pressure coming in direct contact with the bellows. This is obvious since in this construction, the ring 24 is carried by stem 22, and engages the inside surface of valve section I8 to provide the fluid seal-oii. Also a relief check valve 39A may be provided which serves the same purpose as the valve v39 in Fig. 6.

In the modication shown in Fig. 9 the bellows 20 is provided between its convolutions with inside spacers 40 to prevent collapse of the bellows by overload pressure. These spacers may also be placed on the outside as well as the inside if desired.

In the construction shown in Fig. 10 the flow valve 4I is of the type which operates by the hydrostatic pressure of the oil column in the tubing I6, instead of by the gas lift pressure between the tubing and casing I0. There is a iitting 42 secured to the tubing I6, and into which the flow valve is screwed as shown. A check valve unit 43 operates the same as the corresponding unit 32 in Fig. 2 to prevent back ilow from tubing to casing. In this case the check valve 43 isV reversed in position. In operation when the hydrostatic pressure exceeds a. predetermined amount, as determined by the adjustment of nut 2l, valve 26 opens, whereupon the lifting gas can enter by way of valve'34 and force the oil column upwardly through the tub' ing. There is an O-ring seal 44 between the iitting 42 and the flow valve.v 'Ihis construction is simple and positive. Fig. l1 illustrates use of the two types of flow valves. That is, there is the flow valve I2 which operates by the gas pressure in casing i0, and the flow valve fiI which operates by the hydrostatic pressure of the oil column in the tubing I6. By the use of these two types of valves the well may be flowed either by intermitting gas to the casing and owing through valve I2, or the well may be flowed with a constant gas pressure in the casing applied to the tubing through the valve 4I which is controlled by the hydrostatic pressure of the oil within the tubing. This dual method of gas lifting gives flexibility of operation which is desirable in certain wells for maximum emciency. A tubing packer 45 serves the purpose of directing the uid flow through the tubing I6. The use of the packer is not required in many wells.

In Fig. 12 the bellows 46, which corresponds to and serves the same purpose as the bellows 29 in Fig. 2, is of a type which can be fully collapsed, as shown in Fig. 13 of valve 26. The bellows may be charged through a copper tube 41 which is bent and sealed after the charging. Bellows of this type, when operated to a fully compressed position are capable of withstanding extremely high pressures and require no bellows seal.

In Fig` 13 the additions of ring type permanent magnets at X and X serve the purpose of giving snap action to the opening and closing of the valve. The other material used in the valve would be non-magnetic in this case.

In the construction shown in Fig. I4 the bellows 26 is filled with water, Prestone, or any other suitable liquid. This liquid forms a positive fluid trap in the bellows when the valve completely opens causing gasket Y to seat on Y and this trapped fluid will give support to the inside thereof from collapse due to excessive outside pressure. An additional air or gas chamber 48 is provided above the liquid so that proper operation can be obtained even though the space inside the bellows is filled with liquid.

Fig. 15 illustrates a novel form of fitting 49 which may be usedior shop testing the opening pressure of flow valves prior to well installation.

It will be understood that various modifications within the conception of those skilled in the art are possible without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A ilow valve comprising, a housing, said housing providing a valve seat and a ilow passage in one end thereof extending through said valve seat, a pressurized bellows connected at one end to the other end of the housing, an extension on the other end of said bellows, a valve stem connected at one end to said extension and having a seating element on the other end thereof to seat upon said valve seat to close said fiow passage, and means including the pressure of said bellows urging said valve stem to closed position, said housing providing port means in the wall thereof to admit pressure uid into said housing between said valve seat and said bellows, at least one of said extension and said housing having a sealing means therein of the O-ring type accessible from either end of said housing to establish sealing contact therebetween on the bellows side of said port means, and a fluid pressure check valve disposed in the housing wall on the bellows side of said sealing means and arranged to relieve trapped fiuid pressure on the exterior surface of said bellows.

2. A iiow valve comprising, a housing, said housing providing a valve seat and a iiow passage in one end thereof extending through said valve seat, a pressurized bellows connected at one end to the other end of the housing, an extension on the other end of said bellows, a valve stem connected at one end to said extension and having a seating element on the other end thereof to seat upon said valve seat to close said flow passage, and means including the pressure of said bellows urging said valve stem to closed position, said housing providing port means in the Wall thereof to admit pressure fluid into said housing between said valve seat and said bellows, at least one of said extension and said housing having a sealing means therein of the O-ring type accessible from either end of said housing to establish sealing contact therebetween on the bellows side of said port means, and a fluid pressure check valve disposed in the housing wall on the bellows side of said sealing means and arranged to relieve trapped fluid pressure on the exterior surface of said bellows, said extension being of substantially the same cross-sectional area of said bellows.

3. A ow valve comprising, a housing, said housing providing a valve seat and a flow passage in one end thereof extending through said valve seat, a pressurized bellows connected at one end to the other end of the housing, an extension on the other end of said bellows, a valve stem connected at one end to said extension and having a seating element on the other end thereof to seat upon said valve seat to close said flow passage, and means including the pressure of said bellows urging said valve stem to closed position, said housing providing port means in the wall thereof t9 admit pressure fluid into said housing between said valve seat and said bellows, an enlarged portion on said stem spaced from its connection to said extension a sealing member in said housing between said bellows and said port means, a shoulder in said housing between said sealing member and said valve seat, a radially extending enlargement on said extension positioned in slidably sealing contact with said sealing member when said stem is moved to compress said bellows and to bring said portion in abutment with said shoulder, at least one of said extension and said housing having a sealing means therein of the O-ring type accessible from either end of said housing to establish sealing contact therebetween on the bellows side of said port means, and a fluid pressure check valve disposed in the housing wall on the bellows side of said sealing means and arranged to relieve trapped uid pressure on the exterior surface of said bellows, said sealing member being of the O-ring type and being accessible from either end of said housing.

4. A fiow valve comprising, a housing, said housing providing a valve seat and a flow passage in one end thereof extending through said valve seat, a pressurized bellows connected at one end to the other end of the housing, an extension on the other end of said bellows, a valve stem connected at one end to said extension and having a seating element on the other end thereof to seat upon said valve seat to close said iiow passage, and means including the pressure of said bellows urging said valve stem to closed position, said housing providing port means in the wall thereof to admit pressure fluid into said housing between said valve seat and said bellows, a reduced inner diameter portion of said housing between said bellows and said port means, a sealing member in said portion, said extension having a reduced outer diameter section extending into said portion in slidably sealing contact with said sealing member, said extension also providing passage means therein opening outwardly at one end on the bellows side of said portion and opening outwardly at the other end so that such opening is positioned on the valve seat side of said sealing member when said stem moves toward valve closed position and on the bellows side of said sealing member when said valve stern moves toward valve opened position, and a iiuid pressure check valve disposed in the ,housing wall on the bellows side of said sealing means and arranged to relieve trapped fluid pressure on the exterior surface of said bellows, said sealing member being of the-O-ring type and being accessible from either end of said housing.

5. A ow valve comprising, a housing, said housing providing a valve seat and a flow passage in one end thereof extending through said valve seat, a pressurized bellows connected at one end to the other end of the housing, a valve stem connected at one end to said bellows and having a seating element on the other end thereof to seat upon said valve seat to close said flow passage, and means including the pressure of said bellows urging said valve stern to closed position, said housing providing port means in the wall thereof to admit pressure iiuid into said housing between said valve seat and said bellows, a sealing means between said valve stem and said housing on the bellows side of said port means, an exit for pressure fluid trapped by said sealing means in the housing space surrounding said bellows and acting on the exterior of said bellows, and a pressure relief valve to control said exit.

JAMES I-I. HOWARD. PAUL R. MILLS.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,184,636 Crickmer et al. Dec. 26, 1939 2,243,308 Crickmer et al. May 27, 1941 2,254,061 Crickmer Aug. 26, 1941 2,261,135 Boynton Nov. 4, 1941 2,321,002 Boynton June 8, 1943 2,323,893 Boynton July 13, 1943 2,339,487 King Jan. 18, 1944 2,391,605 Walton Dec. 25, 1945 2,446,680 Walton Aug.V 10, 1948 2,465,060 Carlisle et al Mar. 22, 1949 

